Getting Paid: How to Get Customers to Pay UpDealing with the money isn't fun, but it's a necessary evil for staying in business. While every business has their ups and downs, the key to positive cash flow is collecting payments in full and on time to keep the cash coming in as predictably as possible. Seem impossible? Learn how these small-business owners did it.

CE in the Home

Valve co-founder talks Steam Box competitorsThe forthcoming Steam Box video-game console won't primarily compete with products from Microsoft, Nintendo and Sony, but with whatever will emerge from Apple in the near future, Valve Software co-founder Gabe Newell said. "The threat right now is that Apple has gained a huge amount of market share, and has a relatively obvious pathway towards entering the living room with their platform," he said. "I think that there’s a scenario where we see sort of a dumbed-down living room platform emerging -- I think Apple rolls the console guys really easily. The question is can we make enough progress in the PC space to establish ourselves there, and also figure out better ways of addressing mobile before Apple takes over the living room?" Digital Trends
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MERA president: Automakers, aftermarket firms should collaborateChris Cook, president of the Mobile Electronics Retailers Association, wants automotive manufacturers to be better suited to letting aftermarket companies add their products to vehicles. "It would be helpful for a car maker to provide a seamless experience for upgrading," he said during a CES 2013 panel discussion, noting that Ford's Sync platform isn't integrated with many aftermarket products. CEOutlook.com
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Transformational Journeys: Modern Business PlanningHarvard Business Review explores why CFO's and their finance organizations must adapt to the changing landscape of their markets and how big data, organizational collaboration, and new cloud-based planning and analysis technologies are driving successful change. Click here to access the report.

Tech News

New products propel Q4 tablet shipments upwardProduct variety and affordable prices drove tablet shipments forward in the fourth quarter, with an increase of 73% over the third quarter, according to research firm IDC. The firm said 52.5 million tablets were delivered, an increase from 29.9 million in 2011. "New product launches from the category's top vendors, as well as new entrant Microsoft, led to a surge in consumer interest and very robust shipment totals during the holiday season," said Tom Mainelli, IDC research director for tablets. The Wall Street Journal/Dow Jones Newswires
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Sources: Sony will introduce its new console this monthSony will introduce its next-generation PlayStation video-game console this month, The Wall Street Journal reports, citing people familiar with the matter. The rollout comes amid a struggling retail environment for console hardware, as Nintendo recently reduced its estimate for sales of the new Wii U system. The Wall Street Journal
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Google wants the FCC to not reveal Glass photos, manualGoogle filed details of its Project Glass product with the Federal Communications Commission and requested that the agency not make public photos of the Glass product and its manual. Google's Warwick Wong wrote in a letter to the FCC, "The market for the technology that is the subject of the certification application is a highly competitive one [and] were Google’s competitors to become aware of the facts set forth … it could have an adverse effect on Google’s competitive standing and deprive Google of the marketplace benefit it otherwise might achieve by virtue of having a product available before other competitors." The Register (U.K.)
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Combating Identity Theft in a Mobile, Social WorldMobile connectivity threats extend from consumers to the business environment. But who is really responsible for securing sensitive information? Smart business leaders are becoming proactive on the matter. Learn how to get protected in this white paper. Download the white paper now.

A Retailer's Guide to 'Demand-Driven' (+Gartner Research)Consumers today have access to endless input and decide in moments. Discover how the demand-driven supply chain responds quickly to changing consumer preferences and supports demand shaping, while pre-emptively positioning inventory. This has far-reaching impacts on the enterprise and supplier community, not to mention the top and bottom line.

CEA Zap

2013 CES conference session videos and moreIf you attended the 2013 International CES® and didn’t make it to all the conference sessions you wanted to see or wasn’t able to attend CES this year, you’re in luck. We’ve posted many of the conference sessions, all the keynote addresses and SuperSessions on CESweb.org. Hear Arianna Huffington moderate a panel of experts discussing the digital health revolution, a panel of brand executives react to young consumers talking about their digital media habits, young entrepreneurs discuss how technology influenced their vision for the next big thing and so much more. It’s all here on CES TV.

CEA's new membership category is for startupsThe special focus on startups is consistent with CEA's commitment of fostering innovation as a national strategy and as part of its mission. CEA's startup category will offer regular membership at a reduced rate of $95 per year. To qualify for this membership, companies must be in development of a technology product, service or app that has been introduced into the market within the last year or will be within the next year; have annual sales under $1 million; be located in North America; and not have been a CEA member within the past two years. Companies will receive regular CEA membership benefits at the reduced rate in the startup category for up to two consecutive years. Find out more on CE.org.